Rice and East Carolina are the only Conference USA teams to enjoy a winning pointspread record over the last 10 seasons, a trend college football betting enthusiasts are sure to watch carefully this season. Teams are listed in predicted order of finish with 2009 records, returning starters (RS) - including kickers--and returning lettermen (RL) in parentheses:
CUSA EAST
CENTRAL FLORIDA (8-5 SU, 9-3 ATS, 15 RS, 46 RL)
By the Numbers (2000-2009)
SU:57-64
ATS: 55-56-1
HF:15-11-1
HD:11-11
AF:7-12
AD:21-20
Sportsbook Buster: The Knights are 7-12 as road favorites the past 10 seasons.
Sports Betting Angle: Central Florida has covered four straight games against Tulane.
SOUTHERN MISSISSIPPI (7-6 SU, 6-6 ATS, 12 RS, 42 RL)
By the Numbers (2000-2009)
SU:74-52
ATS: 59-59-2
HF:22-23
HD:1-3
AF:18-13-1
AD:13-17
Sportsbook Buster: The Golden Eagles are 18-13-1 as away favorites the last 10 years.
Sports Betting Angle: Southern Mississippi is 8-1 ATS its last nine games versus East Carolina.
MARSHALL (7-6 SU, 7-5 ATS, 14 RS, 45 RL)
By the Numbers (2000-2009)
SU:67-56
ATS: 47-62-4
HF:14-18-2
HD:9-4-1
AF:7-14-1
AD:13-25
Sportsbook Buster: The Thundering Herd is 20-39-1 ATS on the road the past 10 years.
Sports Betting Angle: Since the start of the 2000 season, Marshall is 9-4-1 as a home underdog.
ALABAMA-BIRMINGHAM (5-7 SU, 5-7 ATS, 16 RS, 54 RL)
By the Numbers (2000-2009)
SU:49-68
ATS: 54-56-2
HF:13-17
HD:11-5-2
AF:5-9
AD:25-24
Sportsbook Buster: The Blazers are 11-5-2 as home underdogs the last 10 seasons.
Sports Betting Angle: UAB is 8-1-1 ATS in its last 10 games against Memphis.
EAST CAROLINA (9-5 SU, 7-5-1 ATS, 8 RS, 43 RL)
By the Numbers (2000-2009)
SU:59-65
ATS: 62-58-2
HF:15-15
HD:12-10-1
AF:9-13
AD:22-15-1
Sportsbook Buster: The Pirates are 22-15-1 as away underdogs the last 10 seasons.
Sports Betting Angle: East Carolina has covered 13 of its last 14 meetings with Memphis.
MEMPHIS (2-10 SU, 2-9 ATS, 13 RS, 45 RL)
By the Numbers (2000-2009)
SU:53-68
ATS: 48-62-2
HF:12-19
HD:13-10
AF:4-9-1
AD:16-20-1
Sportsbook Buster: The Tigers are 16-28-1 as favorites the last 10 years.
Sports Betting Angle: Memphis has covered six of its last eight games versus Tennessee.
CUSA WEST
HOUSTON (10-4 SU, 8-5 ATS, 14 RS, 46 RL)
By the Numbers (2000-2009)
SU: 60-64
ATS: 52-66-1
HF:18-17
HD:8-9
AF:7-13-1
AD:15-20
Sportsbook Buster: The Cougars are just 22-33-1 ATS on the road the last 10 years.
Sports Betting Angle: Houston has covered seven consecutive games against Tulane.
TULSA (5-7 SU, 4-6-1 ATS, 14 RS, 42 RL)
By the Numbers (2000-2009)
SU:62-64
ATS: 56-61-3
HF:15-14
HD:12-10-1
AF:13-14-2
AD:12-20
Sportsbook Buster: The Golden Hurricane is 12-20 as road underdogs the last 10 years.
Sports Betting Angle: Tulsa has covered five straight games against Tulane.
SMU (8-5 SU, 7-5 ATS, 15 RS, 49 RL)
By the Numbers (2000-2009)
SU:34-84
ATS: 52-62-1
HF:8-13
HD:17-17
AF:3-5
AD:23-26-1
Sportsbook Buster: The home team in the SMU-Rice series is 12-3 ATS.
Sports Betting Angle: SMU is 1-10 ATS on the road against non-conference opponents.
UTEP (4-8 SU, 5-7 ATS, 12 RS, 45 RL)
By the Numbers (2000-2009)
SU:48-72
ATS: 50-63
HF:11-15
HD:13-12
AF:5-11
AD:21-23
Sportsbook Buster: The Miners are 16-12 as favorites the last 10 years.
Sports Betting Angle: UTEP has covered three straight versus both SMU and Houston.
RICE (2-10 SU, 4-7-1 ATS, 18 RS, 51 RL)
By the Numbers (2000-2009)
SU:46-72
ATS: 61-54-2
HF:13-8
HD:17-8-2
AF:4-8
AD:24-26
Sportsbook Buster: The Owls are 30-16-2 ATS at home the last decade.
Sports Betting Angle: Rice has covered seven straight games with UTEP.
TULANE (3-9 SU, 3-8 ATS, 11 RS, 48 RL)
By the Numbers (2000-2009)
SU:42-76
ATS: 48-62-1
HF:8-8
HD:13-21-1
AF:4-3
AD:22-29
Sportsbook Buster: The Green Wave is just 13-21-1 as a home underdog the last 10 years.
Sports Betting Angle: Tulane has covered five of its last six meetings against Army.
Legend:
SU= Straight Up
ATS = Against the Spread
HF= Home Favorite
HD= Home Underdog
AF= Away Favorite
AD= Away Underdog
This is the eighth installment of an 11-part preview series.
Next: College Football Betting 2010: The Mountain West Conference.
This article was written by Luken Karel for http://www.thegreek.com. The Greek Sportsbook & Casino is host to one of the top online sportsbooks offering college football betting and sports betting on NFL, NBA, MLB, NHL and all other major sports. The Greek is a must have sports betting and entertainment portal with one of the largest wagering menus available online. Article reproductions must include a link pointing to http://www.thegreek.com
